


The music of lovers

by Differentshadesofgrey



Category: Law & Order: SVU
Genre: Barba/Benson friendship, Dancing Lessons, F/M, Gen, M/M, Mild Smut, Romance, Sonny can’t dance, Sonny/Reader friendship, but Barba can, salsa - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-24
Updated: 2019-08-24
Packaged: 2020-09-25 21:56:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,417
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20378740
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Differentshadesofgrey/pseuds/Differentshadesofgrey
Summary: You try to teach Sonny to dance. He’s terrible at it. Barba steps in to help. Sexual tension and smut follows.





	The music of lovers

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: The idea for this came to me while watching this video on YouTube of Raúl singing Como Arrullo de Palmas on repeat. https://youtu.be/5B3Jo2qS2N0
> 
> I have this HC that Sonny Carisi can’t dance to save his life. I feel like Barba probably has amazing natural rhythm. I have no idea why I think this, I just do.
> 
> This originally started as just a fluffy story of reader attempting to teach Sonny to dance and Rafael helping demonstrate, but apparently I can’t help but turn everything a little smutty. Honestly, I blame Raúl and his hips.

The sound of Salsa music filled the near empty squad room. You and Carisi stood in the middle of the room, your hands planted firmly on your partners waist.

Sonny took a step forward, eyes fixed firmly on his feet and accidentally bumped his head with yours. “Shit! Sorry,” he muttered.

“Don’t worry about it,” you laughed easily, rubbing at your head. You leaned over your desk, tapping at your phone to restart the song, before turning back to him, “Here, try again.” You held out a hand for him to take.

Pulling him towards you, you placed your hands back at his waist and guided him backwards and forwards in time to the music. “1,2,3. 5,6,7.” you counted the steps out loud for him and he carefully copied your movements. “That’s it,” you encouraged, “Keeping time is half the battle, and the rest is in the hips,” you swayed your own hips in demonstration. 

“Salsa is the music of lovers. It’s supposed to be passionate, sensual, y’know, try to think of it less like dancing and more as a seduction...” You explained, trailing off as Barba and Benson emerged from her office and you were momentarily distracted by the sight of the handsome ADA.

Barba had his jacket folded over his arm and his shirt sleeves were rolled up, revealing toned forearms. It was late and he had loosened his tie, his top button undone and the hint of a five o’clock shadow creeping across his jaw.

“What’s going on here?” Liv asked, eyebrows raised. You kept your movement going but turned your head to look at her.

“Carisi’s new girlfriend is into Salsa dancing,” you told her with a grin, “and he doesn’t know how, so I’m trying to teach him.” You winced as Sonny accidentally stepped on your toes, for about the hundredth time.

Liv bit her lip, fighting a smile, “Mmmm. And how’s that working out?”

You pulled a face that indicated not well, at the same time that Sonny said “Awesome!”

You turned your head back to him “We’re... making progress,” you allowed, and he beamed at you.

“Yeah, I think I’m finally getting the hang of it, right?”

“Almost, with a little more practice.” You agreed, kindly. “But this isn’t junior prom, so unless you’ve secretly joined the priesthood, there’s no need to leave space between us for the Lord.” You looked down pointedly at the huge gap between your body and his.

Barba snorted.

“Oh, right, sorry,” Sonny spluttered, blushing, “I just, I mean, I didn’t wanna...” he trailed off and you laughed again, moving forward to lessen the space between you, as you continued to guide him through the steps.

“You’re allowed to hold me close for this Sonny, in fact it’s encouraged.” You reassured him. “Try to relax.”

Sonny nodded but he still kept a careful distance between you, his hands on your shoulders and his posture uncomfortably rigid.

Liv and Barba continued to stand and watch for a few more minutes, as you helped Sonny repeat the basic steps again and again, until apparently Barba couldn’t take it any longer.

“Oh for god sake!” he snapped, “Carisi, can you at least _pretend _like you _have_ touched a woman before?

“Hey!” Sonny huffed indignantly, the tips of his ears turning pink with embarrassment, “I’ve touched plenty of women,” he said defensively, glaring at Barba, “I mean ... I... this is different. I’m just not good at dancing, okay? It’s really hard!”

Barba rolled his eyes, “No.” he scoffed, “It really isn’t.”

“Oh yeah? Okay then, if it’s so _easy,_ then go ahead counselor,” Sonny challenged, waving his hand with a flourish, “Show me how it’s done.”

You and Liv stood quietly, watching their exchange with amusement.

Barba stared at Carisi for a long moment, eyes darting to you, and then back again, seemingly torn, before finally he sighed. “Fine.”

Placing his suit jacket on the back of a chair, Barba turned to you, quirking an eyebrow in invitation, “May I?” He asked, offering you his hand.

“You may.” You returned, secretly thrilled with this turn of events. You had been harboring a crush on the attractive prosecutor ever since you had started working with SVU, over a year ago.

Your lips twitched up into a smile as you changed the mid tempo tune currently playing, to a more uptempo one, and then accepted his outstretched hand.

Barba immediately pulled you in close. He held your right hand lightly in his own, and brought his left hand up to your back, pressing you against him. He began to move, gracefully leading you in perfect time to the beat of the music.

You found you had a natural rhythm together, your movements completely in sync, and he seemed impressed when you kept up easily, as he led you effortlessly through several complicated dips and turns, clearly showing off.

As the song came to an end and the music continued into a slower, more intimate number, he turned his head to look at you, bringing you even closer together. Suddenly invading all of your senses. At this distance, you could see that his green eyes held flecks of gold. You could smell the spicy musk of his cologne, mixed with something that was undeniably *him*. You could hear the staccato sound of his breathing, could feel the warmth of his hands where he held you and the sensual sway of his hips.

You were so close that if you tilted your head up, just a fraction, you would be able to press your lips to his. You knew you shouldn’t, though you couldn’t quite remember why in that moment. Your head felt fuzzy, he was intoxicating.

You inhaled deeply, closing your eyes, as you tried instead to concentrate on the music, but it was no use. You were already lost.

All you could think about was how good it felt to have his hands on you, the length of his body pressed against yours, hips moving together in a rhythm that was almost sinful.

You found your mind drifting as you imagined how it would feel to have his hands on you in other places. Along with his mouth... his fingers... his tongue. You wondered if he was half as talented in the bedroom as he was at dancing and decided you were certain that he was.

Coming back from your daydream, you realized belatedly that the music had stopped and you were no longer moving. Barba still held you in his arms, your bodies pressed together intimately, both breathing heavily. Your audience was completely forgotten, all you could focus on was him.

Barba seemed similarly dazed. He didn’t release you immediately, instead his hands tightened on you almost imperceptibly. When you looked up at him, his eyes were dark, pupils blown wide. His gaze fell to your mouth, and when your tongue darted out to lick along your lower lip, his eyes followed the movement. He swallowed thickly.

“You’re an excellent dancer, detective,” he murmured, his voice dangerously low and rough. The sound sent a jolt of arousal straight to your core. 

“Thank you,” You breathed, smiling coyly at the compliment. “I could say the same about you, counselor.”

You shifted against him and were pleasantly surprised when you felt him, hard, at your hip. The realization that he was similarly affected by your proximity only served to increase the ache between your thighs. You shifted again, searching for friction and gasped when his erection brushed against your most intimate parts. He flushed, quickly shifting his hips away, and finally releasing his hold on you.

Clearing his throat, he turned, keeping his back to Benson and Carisi, and grabbed his jacket from its place on the chair. He held it in front of himself in a less than subtle attempt at hiding his body’s reaction to you, as he took several steps back, increasing the distance between you.

“I... uh... I should... go,” he muttered, averting his eyes. His voice was unsteady. “I have work... still... in my office.” He cleared his throat for a second time, “I should go.” He repeated, seemingly convincing himself.

He didn’t wait for a reply, just turned on his heel and headed for the door.

You watched him go, tracking his movement until he was out of sight, before turning back to face Benson and Carisi. They were both staring at you.

Confusion graced Carisi’s features,but Liv just looked amused and not in the slightest bit surprised.

Sonny let out a low whistle. “Wow. I see what you mean now about the seduction thing, but what the hell was that?” He was frowning at you.

You blinked at him. “What?”

“All that tension, and your just gonna let him leave like that? No kiss, no nothin’?” Sonny shook his head in disbelief. “You should go after him!”

“But what if he doesn’t want, I mean he might not...” you cut yourself off, biting your lip unsurely, “What if he turns me down?”

“Never gonna happen.” Benson laughed lightly, “Go.”

You turned, running across the squad room, rounding the corner and sprinting down the hall at full speed, arriving at the elevator just as Barba stepped into it.

You slipped in beside him before the doors could slide shut, then bent over, hands braced on your knees, panting and breathless from the exercise.

He looked alarmed. “Are you alright, detective?” Clear concern registered on his face and he reached out to rest a tentative hand on your shoulder.

When you finally caught your breath, you stood up straight, turning to face him. “I’m fine,” you assured him, “It’s just, you forgot something.”

He raised one eyebrow at you, in silent question, but you didn’t answer. Instead, you stepped forward, into his personal space.

When he didn’t back away, you took another step towards him, and then another, until you were close enough that you were sharing one breath. “Is this okay?” You asked, your voice soft and sultry.

He nodded, just a tiny, almost invisible bob of his head, and you saw his throat working to swallow. You put a hand on the back of his neck, pulling him forward and crashing your lips to his.

He made a small sound, akin to surprise, hesitating for just a half of a second before his eyes closed and one of his hands came up to cup your cheek, the other tangling in your hair.

You were pleased to find that he was just as adept at kissing as he was dancing.

His lips were soft, his tongue gentle but demanding in its thorough exploration of your mouth. He tasted like coffee and mint. One of your hands was on his chest and you could feel the rapid beat of his heart, keeping time with your own.

He tugged lightly on your hair, tilting your head back just enough to allow him to deepen the kiss and you melted into him, dizzy with lust. You felt like every single nerve ending in your body was alight. You pressed yourself impossibly closer, needing to feel every inch of him and you could feel his body responding to yours once again.

When you finally parted, gasping for breath, he smiled down at you, caressing your cheek with his thumb. “Have dinner with me.”

You shook your head, “Come home with me,” you countered boldly, meeting his eyes. He laughed, his eyes crinkling at the corners.

“Yes.” He conceded instantly, touching his lips to yours again briefly, “_After_ dinner.”

You rolled your eyes, but you couldn’t keep the smile from your face. “Fine. There’s a hot dog stand on the corner, we can stop there on the way to my place.”

He laughed again, “That’s not exactly what I had in mind.”

“No?” you breathed, as you leaned back in, capturing his lips once more in a heated kiss.

As your tongue licked into his mouth, your hands roamed the expanse of his back and shoulders, before coming down to cup his ass, pulling him flush against you. He hissed in pleasure as his hardness brushed your hip. Shifting, you kissed sloppily across his jaw, and captured his earlobe gently between your teeth as you brought one hand around between you to palm him through his slacks. He moaned, hands clutching at you desperately, his eyes drifting closed as his hips bucked forward into your hand.

“Wait... we... _ah_... we can’t.... do this... here,” he ground out weakly, though he made no attempt to move away.

“Okay.” You smiled against his throat, where you were placing open mouthed kisses and slowed the movement of your hand against him, “You still want dinner, or....?” You ran your fingers suggestively along his erection, where it strained the seam of his pants, and he whined in the back of his throat, the sound almost tortured.

He let out a shuddering breath, “Fuck dinner.” 

You nipped at a spot just below his ear, “I was hoping you would fuck _me_ instead,” you purred and he groaned in response.

He reluctantly moved away, taking your hand in his so that he could lead you urgently from the elevator and out the front of the building, onto the street. Hailing a cab, he helped you in to the backseat before sliding in beside you. He sat close enough so that your bodies were touching from your shoulders to your thighs and he took your hand in his again, fingers entwined, resting lightly in your lap. He was quiet, staring out of the window, but you could feel the tension thrumming through his body. One of his knees was bouncing gently and he had an elbow propped against the window, hand at his mouth as he bit on the pad of his thumb. He was a tightly coiled spring, just waiting for release.

The ride back to your apartment felt like an eternity. It took every ounce of your self control not to just jump him right there in the back of the cab.

You managed to restrain yourself long enough to make it into your apartment but he was on you the moment you unlocked the front door, all hands and lips and tongue. Demanding and needy and _oh so hot_. You let him fuck you right there up against the door and then later, on the couch and then again when eventually, much later, you finally made it to the bedroom.


End file.
